Tokyo jolted by third quake in four days

TOKYO - Tokyo was struck by a third earthquake infour days today, but there were no reports of damage or casualties.

The 5.0 magnitude jolt was felt in Tokyo and areas of eastern Japan at 7.25am local time, the US Geological Survey said.

It was the third quake to shake the capital’s high-rise buildings in recentdays -- following a 4.8 magnitude quake yesterday and one of 5.0 on Sunday --but an official with the Japan Meteorological Agency said they weren’t aprecursor of a major jolt.

"This is an area that sees frequent earthquakes" of a moderate size,Nariaki Ohkawara said, adding that the latest quakes were part of thattrend.

The epicentre of today’s quake was east of the capital in Ibarakiprefecture at a depth of about 44 kilometres, the USGS said.

There was no threat of a tsunami, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

Japan sits at the junction of four tectonic plates and experiences a numberof relatively violent quakes every year, but rigid building codes and strictenforcement mean even powerful tremors frequently do little damage.

A massive undersea quake that hit in March 2011 sent a tsunami barrellinginto Japan’s northeast coast, leaving more than 18,000 people dead or missing,and sending three reactors into meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear plant.

In April, two strong earthquakes hit southern Japan’s Kumamoto prefecturefollowed by more than 1,700 aftershocks, and left 49 dead and caused widespreaddamage.

The country routinely holds emergency drills to prepare for a major jolt,and the government stepped up its disaster response in the wake of the 2011devastation. – AFP